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The First Leg of My Lone Star ‘Pilgrimage of Hope’ is Done
One cathedral down, 16 to go
Back in December, I wrote a story about my goal for the Jubilee Year of 2025: making a pilgrimage to all 17 cathedrals in the Great State of Texas (since I can’t make it to Rome this year). It’s a more ambitious goal than I first thought, especially when having to work it around taking care of my elderly stepfather who will not set foot in a Catholic church. Even so, every journey begins with a single step, and this week I took that first step with a visit to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Tyler, TX.
One of the benefits of pilgrimages during this Jubilee Year is that there is a plenary indulgence available when certain conditions are met. Before my Protestant friends bristle at the word indulgence and start quoting Martin Luther, an indulgence does not forgive sins; an indulgence is a remission of the temporal punishment for sins that have already been forgiven. And yes, this also necessitates a belief in Purgatory, but that’s a discussion for another day.
The requirements for receiving the indulgence are quite straightforward: visit a designated pilgrimage site (i.e. one of the four major papal basilicas of Rome, the Holy Land, or a designated local cathedral), participate in a liturgical celebration (the Mass), receive the…
